Seattle's Homeless Crisis

HOW SEATTLE'S TECH BOOM HAS LED TO A MASS HOMELESS CRISIS

VICE // PRODUCER & CAMERA OPERATOR

Homelessness in Seattle has exploded in the past ten years. It’s part of a nationwide trend that can be seen in Silicon Valley, Reno, and Denver - tech booms in what’s known as ‘start-up cities’ rapidly raise the price of rent, resulting in massive increases in homelessness.

The Jungle is one of the largest homeless encampments in the U.S., and it's in the middle of Seattle's city center. It's a community that’s fighting to survive, as the local government is quickly trying to push them out of sight to other ‘temporary’ lots further from the city. In this documentary, we spend a day with some long-time residents of The Jungle, and see how the issue of homelessness is not only linked to addiction and mental illness, but to this ongoing trend caused by tech booms.